1.21.11

2 Timothy 2:3-4

3 Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer.


Dear friend,

Good morning. Today I want to bring a verse to you that we can chew on for the weekend and apply to our lives. The verse reminds us that we are in a war and have to endure without getting too caught up and influenced by our culture (civilian affairs). As His followers there will be hardships and we have to remember who our commanding officer is.... JESUS! Paul is reminding Timothy, and us, that we will be tempted to forget the fact that we are to battle.

For example, this week my family and I are on vacation and as I write this my baby girl is sitting here laughing, drooling, cooing and having a great time! Ahhhhh...... Then I flip on the TV to ABC "Family" to see back to back commercials for "family" shows where young woman are wearing handkerchiefs for shorts and doing well.....never mind. Reminder to self, there is a battle already waging for my daughter and she's not even a year old! Am I battle ready???

Do you want to hear from commander Jesus with me today on how to fight our battle and please our commanding officer? Since we are on the battle field think of some of the ways Jesus is commanding us.

Imagine you are a soldier and you receive these orders from Jesus:

• Life- I am the way the truth the life (John 14:6) I am watching and helping you.
• Weapons - Use my Word to demolish ALL strongholds.
• Strength- Battle with the strength I provide you so that I am praised (1 Peter 4:11) and others are encouraged.
• Work - Work as though you're working for me not for men (Colossian 3:23).
• Marriage- To the men, love your wives as I laid my life down for you. To the wives, respect your husbands (Ephesians 5).
• Children - Honor your parents.
• Money- Godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Timothy 6:6) so seek me first (Matthew 6:33) then go help the least.
• Enemy - Yes you have an enemy (1 Peter 5) and he roams around like a lion. Submit to me and resist him and he will flee (James 4:7).
• Battle- Put on the full armor that I gave you (Ephesians 6) and use it everyday!
• Love- I love you so much that I laid my life down for you and I gave you everything you needed. Now go love others (1 Corinthians 13) and tell them how to fight the good fight and win!Blessings in your battle today!

Gods grace to you.
Ty D.

1.20.11

Psalm 42:11
Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.¹

Dear friend,

David Martyn Lloyd-Jones once wrote, "Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself?"² David was a man after God's own heart and even he struggled with severe depression at times but notice how he speaks truth to himself here and throughout the Bible. In verse 4 of this Psalm he says "these things I remember" in verse 6 he reiterates, "therefore I will remember you".
If you are struggling today with a downcast and disturbed soul, focus on our Savior. He walked the earth as a man, was crucified as a ransom for our sin and conquered death as He rose from the grave. Praise the Lord that we are now crucified with Christ and we no longer live but Christ lives in us!³

In Christ,
Mike

¹ Also Psalm 42:5 and Psalm 43:5
² David Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Spiritual depression: its causes and cures (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1965)
³Galatians 2:20

1.19.11

Colossians 2:33
in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.


Dear friend,

Sometimes it is easy for me to think that I have "arrived" and be in danger of becoming lukewarm and even judgemental. After all, through His Holy Spirit, God has revealed the mystery of Christ to me and I have believed in His gospel. The searching is over, right? What a dangerous thought! It is only by His mercy and grace that He has enabled me to believe and revealed to me a thimble of Himself out of the oceans of his vastness.

As the Word says, in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Only let us make sure that we're searching in the right place. Where are we desperately searching for answers? What are we grasping for that is incapable of fulfilling our needs? Let us be thankful for what knowledge we have been given yet always searching the treasures of our Savior.

In Christ,
Mike

1.18.11

Psalm 33:11
But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever,
the purposes of his heart through all generations.

Dear friend,
An amazing attribute of God is that He is unchangeable. Certainly, the Bible demonstrates times where God, out of compassion or another emotion, expresses Himself differently given a particular situation. For example, in 1 Kings 21, God took notice of Ahab's humbled nature and chose to withhold His punishment at that time, but His justice was still delivered.

But the Bible is very clear that God never changes His attributes or His being, the very essence of who He is! He stands firm forever! He is unchangeable in His promises and His purposes. In Malachi 3:6, He says, "For I the LORD do not change." A very stark contrast to man, who changes with the seasons!

Numbers 23:19 tells us that "God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?" God keeps His Word!

It brings me comfort to know that God's desire for me to spend eternity with Him in Heaven will not change (John 3:16)! That HIS plans for my life will not change (Jeremiah 29:11)! And that His love, mercy and saving grace for me will not change (Ephesians 2:4-5)!

I pray it also brings comfort to you knowing that God is unchangeable. Today, tomorrow and always, regardless of the situation, God remains the same!

In Christ,
Robert

1.17.11

Isaiah 26:3-4

3 You will keep in perfect peace
those whose minds are steadfast,
because they trust in you.
4 Trust in the LORD forever,
for the LORD, the LORD himself, is the Rock eternal.


Dear friend,

This verse is near and dear to my heart because of struggles that I've had with fear and anxiety. In the past, I have struggled daily with panic attacks and debilitating fear that would plague my mind. Ultimately by God's grace, He has taught me (and is consistently teaching me) through His Word and the Holy Spirit that the root cause of my anxiety is a lack of trust in Him and an undisciplined mind. He has also shown me that a spirit plagued with fear is not the spirit He has given us as Christians (2 Timothy 1:7).

In our verse today, we read about perfect peace which is something that many people, including non-Christians, strive for in life. Some empty their minds to try and attain it but here we read that God will keep in perfect peace the mind that is steadfast and that trusts in Him. Is there something that you've been anxious about and that you need to trust God with today?

The Hebrew word for "steadfast" in this verse is used multiple times in the Old Testament when describing the laying of hands upon on an offering. It means to rest, lay upon or lean against. Let us fix, lay and rest our minds upon the Lord today and pray that our faith in God would increase as our fears decrease. He will strengthen and uphold us. Approach Him with thanksgiving and bring your requests to Him. Cast your cares upon Him because He cares for you!

In Christ,
Mike

1.14.11

Acts 1:8

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.


Dear friend,

How do we know when someone is being controlled by the Holy Spirit? What evidence do we have? There's certainly the Fruits of the Spirit as described in Galatians 5:22-23 (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control).

And then there's this evidence in Acts chapter 1. We find that we will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on us. But this isn't just any power. It's the power to witness. Did you know that the Greek word for witness is martyr? So essentially, to be a witness for the Gospel is to give your life for the Gospel! A willingness to sacrifice yourself to share the Good News of Jesus Christ to the very ends of the earth!

It's a holy boldness of sorts. A power that could only come from the Holy Spirit. Where all apprehension and fear is set aside, so that the Gospel is freely proclaimed to all across the lands. Let's face it, our flesh tires quickly, so it could only be through the power of the Holy Spirit that we would be able to persevere! Certainly we can muster up courage now and again, but courage so large as to stand in the face of adversity and under the fire of trials could only come from God.

As believers receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, we are plugged into a great power source; one that will not fail. The eternal Son that will never burn out! Therefore we can receive that power and with boldness share our witness with others. Ask God today to show you an opportunity to boldly share your faith with someone and to be a witness of the Gospel!

In service to our King,
Robert

1.13.11

Isaiah 30:18

Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!

Dear friend,

"Could you wait a minute please?

"Waiting.... What comes to mind when someone asks you to wait?

It's even more difficult as we are a part of a culture that says "you deserve it, so don't wait." Think about all the messages you receive each and every day on the internet, social media, radio, TV, etc. Stunning isn't it. The issue we have with waiting is that we always give up some control of our lives when we choose to wait. If you're like me the very thought of waiting takes too long! However, when we do decide to wait we relinquish our time, will, efforts and control in hopes of receiving what we are waiting for.

How is a person to read a Bible verse (like the one above) and apply it to our lives so we can see God's blessings and bring glory to Him? Why do you think God says that He blesses those who wait on Him?

Our answer is in the context of these verses. You see in Isaiah 30 the nation of Israel was looking everywhere else for protection and help EXCEPT for the one true God. They looked to possessions, Pharaoh, and false prophets to feel better about the situation and get a quick fix. When all He was asking them to do was come to Him. He blesses those who trust that He can deliver them. Do you trust God? Are you trusting and waiting on Him today? Let me encourage you.

My wife and I waited for over six years to start a family. Oh we tried and tried and tried every avenue to take it into our own hands. It was the end of year six and we decided to dig into Isaiah 30 together and pray for 40 days. On day 40 we cried out to God and we both independently heard "WAIT."

To make a long (yet miraculous) story short, this year we celebrated our first Christmas with our beautiful adopted baby girl! Her name is Isabella which means promise of God. She was worth the wait!

God says that He longs to be gracious to you. Take God at His word today and take this promise seriously.

ALL THOSE WHO WAIT ON HIM WILL BE BLESSED!

We want to pray for you and what you are waiting for. Send your prayer requests to prayer@forgivensinner.com and we will lift you up.

-Ty